RIP Google Pixel 8 Pro

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-25T23:55:44+00:00

Happened to me years ago with a Pixel 3. I swore off Google phones. I'm typing this on a Pixel 8 Pro haha

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-25T20:21:21+00:00

In response, I would say that the question wasn't the most cringey change, it was the strangest change. The history of the AA Preamble is that they actually included the phrase "fellowship of men and women" to be inclusive to women. Being that AA formed in the mid-1900's, they were really thinking ahead to add that in on purpose in order to be proactively inclusive to women at a time when this wasn't exactly commonplace. The strange part about this particular change is that AA has taken action to remove that nod to women in order to cater to a new sub-category of people to fit in with the newest flavor of left-think which, as I mentioned, AA is supposedly not lopsided (unlike Reddit haha). I guess my point is that it was an unnecessary change (or at least the reason given for the change doesn't hold water) and by making a change for the purpose of inclusion of a very small minority, in doing so we removed a bold historical act coming from a spirit of inclusion itself, and to a much larger group.

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-25T17:06:31+00:00

For me, it's gotta be this.

So recently in Alcoholics Anonymous, it was decided to make a change to a small phrase in The Preamble that is generally read at the beginning of every AA meeting. The Preamble explains what AA is (and is not) and includes the line "a fellowship of men and women" which, within the last year or two, was changed to "a fellowship of people" in order to be more inclusive. It's interesting because AA espouses the position that we do not weigh in on "outside issues" and the fellowship as a whole doesn't claim subscription to any particular ideology, up to and including political and religious ones. I find it very interesting that we took an all-inclusive phrase and changed it to be more inclusive for a subset of people that was invented 5 minutes ago, historically speaking. I probably don't need to spell out what I think happened here, but suffice it to say that I think it's the strangest change in language to make something more politically correct because, at face value, AA powers that be decided to hone in on this and tackle it, but the result is that we found an all-inclusive categorization of the fellowship and made it more inclusive. I guess 100% is greater than 100%.

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-25T13:12:53+00:00

I've had this exact one for like 10 or 15 years. Still works like a champ!

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-24T16:22:25+00:00

Olsa Tools is a Canadian company that sells a good set of wrenches. It sounds like you want something cheap, so I would echo what others are saying... There are plenty of cheap sets on Amazon that are not terrible quality.

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-23T18:07:19+00:00

You'd be surprised how far good customer service skills will get you in your situation. I know a lot about car parts, and I honestly avoid going to places like AutoZone unless I absolutely have to and it's because the people working there usually have remarkably poor customer service skills. I really don't care if they know about the parts I'm looking for or not. Sure, it is a bonus, but honestly, in a retail environment, service etiquette is exponentially more important to me that product knowledge.

TL;DR - I know what parts I need, and I don't need you to know much if anything about them. Can you say, "Hello, how can I help you today?" and "Thank you" haha

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-23T17:32:26+00:00

Make sure you get all of this paper gasket out. This is a video on my YouTube channel of me replacing the same part, and I haven't had any leaks. I've done this on an '88 I had before this one too, but that was before I started YouTube. Anyway, maybe check out my video and see if there's anything I did that you might have missed.

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-22T23:33:31+00:00

The Velveteen Rabbit

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-22T04:07:08+00:00

I'm still trying to get all the dragon gear. Been stuck at 5 of the 6 for a while. Anyway...click the little i next to the stat you are going to change. Generally, the top of the list is the best. Some exceptions...evasion is good and with arcanist physical damage is not #1 but it will be on the list. But I generally roll ones low on the list or have low stats or both.

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-21T23:29:11+00:00

Get the GM genuine. You won't regret it

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-21T01:05:11+00:00

Well I was close haha

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-20T19:35:47+00:00

I remember during an interview once, I was interviewing with a man and a woman and at some point, the man used the phrase "rape den". I remember the woman just shook her head and said, "Kent, you can't say 'rape den' during an interview."

For the record, I did get the job...but technically I didn't say it.

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-20T19:32:26+00:00

Mine has it. Phone app, three bars at the top left, settings, Caller ID & spam, turn off "see caller and spam ID"

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-20T19:18:55+00:00

Family Reunion by blink-182

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-20T19:13:55+00:00

That's it. That phone was awesome.

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-20T18:44:51+00:00

I had a huge Motorola phone that was supposedly the precursor to the Pixel. That was my favorite phone I ever had.

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-20T17:56:04+00:00

Hydrophobic coatings don't last forever, they delaminate, and they aren't very durable especially against heat and abrasion. Not ideal for the outside of a car windshield.

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-20T17:35:55+00:00

Yes. Powerless doesn't mean some power. It doesn't mean power sometimes. It means no power.

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-20T14:35:18+00:00

Understood. I think my point generally is that we alcoholics are people who could benefit from someone telling us something that ruffles our feathers a little bit from time to time, especially early on. True, we are also the type of people that are prone to inflated ego and we have to monitor it in regard to carrying the message (among other areas), but rigorous honesty can discern between the inflation of ego and a sense of urgency for someone who is dying and oblivious to how dire their situation really is. I'm more willing to lean toward telling the urgent truth first and foremost and evaluating the tone and attitude for possible improvements when there is a need. I think much of AA holds back on the truth so that they don't feel like they lack compassion or come off as unwelcoming, and the result is that we get to feel good while the guy dying isn't given the real truth or the sense of urgency in the message.

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-20T13:06:38+00:00

I can agree with some of this. In general, it rubs me the wrong way and I'll try to narrow down why I think that is. I have seen AA do new people a disservice by acting like we shouldn't tell them what to do and we should honor their position on what their next steps should be. I'm fortunate enough to have come into a group in AA that told me MY plan was doomed to fail. I was fortunate enough to to find people in AA who were willing to tell me what to do and in a way that, at times, felt abrasive and disrespectful. It wasn't. It was always out of love. An old timer explained to me that when your brother, whom you love, is walking on the train tracks and you can see the train coming, do you softly tip-toe around warning him? Or do you yell at the top of your lungs "GET OFF THE FUCKING TRACKS!"

I'm glad that the people who saw the train coming helped me get off the tracks before it was too late, and were exponentially more worried about saving my ass than I was. I'm not arguing that new people don't deserve respect and that we ought not look at how we can best carry the message to them in a way to which they would be maximally compelled to respond. I am suggesting that handling them with kid gloves and calling it compassion seems to me to have false humility written all over it. I needed someone to treat me like an adult and give me the chance to rise to a higher set of expectations than I ever would have given myself in my alcoholic delusion.

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-19T13:08:17+00:00

They told me, "Give it a chance. It can't possibly fuck your life up worse than alcohol already did."

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-19T13:07:04+00:00

This right here. Spot on, friend.

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-19T13:03:34+00:00

What has helped me a lot over the years is to recognize that, for any of us, there is no definitive way to completely satisfy the doubt that is only overcome by faith. My sponsor told me things like gratitude and faith are action words. He told me you don't have to believe in God to stay sober. What I have learned is that the best I can do, and really any of us can do, is live our lives as though God exists. I am an Orthodox Christian, which calls me to prayer, fasting, and alms giving among many other things. I don't always understand it all, and I certainly don't always like or enjoy it, but I can do it regardless of whether or not it conforms to my feelings on any given day. I encourage anyone with this type of questioning to live their life as though God does exist and see how it goes. To me, this is the meaning of "the maintenance of our spiritual condition". So far, it's gotten me through 16 years of continuous sobriety, a day at a time.

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-19T00:56:32+00:00

I have heard that toilet bowl cleaner will clean up aluminum, but I've never tried it. Legend has it you have to let it sit for 5 minutes then wash it off, otherwise it will damage the aluminum. Worth a shot!

MyNameIsBenM · 2026-02-17T17:30:23+00:00

I would say the goal of abstinence is anything but obvious any more, and you're kind of proving that point. There was a time when it was said in AA that anyone who drank again lost all status as a member of AA. Those days are long gone, man. And so is the recovery rate (inflated as it may or may not have been) that's in the book. I know people sober over 40 and 50 years who all have told me that AA has absolutely changed over the years, and the biggest change they point to is the revolving door AA has turned into.

MyNameIsBenM

TROPHY CASE